Port Washington, NY –Supervisor Jon Kaiman and Councilman Fred Pollack announced today that the recent acquisition by the town of a 1 ¾ acre parcel adjacent to West Shore Road inPort Washington will enable the expansion of a walking trail along the western shoreline of NorthHempsteadBeachPark.

The acquisition of the Scotto Bros. property was made possible by $341,000 in federal grants awarded by the National Oceanic andAtmospheric Agency (NOAA) and the Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP).

North Hempstead chipped in another $30,000 to the $371,000 purchase price of the parcel, which will extend the total length of theHempstead Harbor Shoreline Trail to almost two miles.

“Acquisition of this parcel is important to the Town’s efforts to enhance public access to its waterfront as well as protect delicate wetlands,” Supervisor Kaiman said.

The trail, which is designed for walking, jogging, nature view, and passive recreationaluses, starts at the gazebo at the southern end of the former BarBeachPark and extends southward toward the Roslyn viaduct.

“North Hempstead has 32 miles of the most extraordinary coastline on the eastern seaboard, “ Pollack said. The expansion of our shoreline trail will make it much easier for our residents to appreciate HempsteadHarbor and its unique ecology.”

The recent acquisition of the Scotto Bros. parcel is considered key in the construction of the trail, which involves a five-segment plan including connection to the Island Tennis parcel previously acquired through a 2002 CELCP grant.

Construction of this new section of the trail is intended to provide a recreational hub that will continue public access to the coastal shoreline and complement the leisure time offerings at NorthHempsteadBeachPark.